Michael Cohen To Give Deposition To Avenatti In Stormy Daniels Case
Michael Avenatti, best-known for being the lawyer who represents Stormy Daniels, announced Thursday that he will be taking a deposition from longtime Trump lawyer Michael Cohen. Avenatti will ask questions about the nondisclosure agreement signed by Stormy Daniels following her alleged 2006 affair with Donald Trump.
Daniels, a former adult film star, says that she received $130,000 for signing the NDA, a document which bars her from talking about Trump. Cohen paid Daniels the money, and Cohen, in turn, was paid by the Trump Organization, the Daily Mail reports.
Daniels also sued Trump for defamation due to a tweet he wrote about her, but this case was dismissed by a federal judge earlier this week, as reported by the Inquisitr.
“We have set Michael Cohen’s sworn deposition for the date after his sentencing — December 13, 2018,” Avenatti announced via Twitter on Thursday. “We have also requested all recordings he has of communications between him and Donald Trump.”
We have set Michael Cohen's sworn deposition for the date after his sentencing – December 13, 2018. We have also requested all recordings he has of communications between him and Donald Trump. We look forward to disclosing the truth about what Trump's fraud and deceit. #Basta pic.twitter.com/9MliSaAJ0s
— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) October 18, 2018
Michael Cohen has already pleaded guilty to eight counts of campaign finance and other violations. During his guilty plea, Cohen said that he was directed to create the nondisclosure agreement with Stormy Daniels. Cohen also said that he violated campaign finance laws at Trump’s direction.
Cohen met with federal law enforcement officials this week, according to CNN. During the meeting, Cohen is said to have discussed multiple aspects of Donald Trump’s business interests.
Cohen, who served for years as Trump’s personal lawyer, has met several times with prosecutors from Robert Mueller’s office. Mueller is leading the special investigation into Donald Trump’s involvement with the Russian hacking of the 2016 presidential election.
Trump has said that Cohen lied during his guilty plea, and that he did not direct Cohen to pay Stormy Daniels. According to Trump, Cohen is little more than a “PR person who did small legal work, very small legal work.”
Cohen pleaded guilty to making false statements, tax evasion, and other campaign finance violations before a federal court while under oath.
Avenatti has gained national prominence as the attorney for Stormy Daniels, and has teased that he’s exploring his own presidential bid in 2020. Trump and Avenatti have previously engaged in multiple contentious back-and-forth conversations on Twitter.
“I’m one of the few people who can beat Donald Trump if I decide to run for the U.S. presidency,” Avenatti previously stated, Yahoo! News reports.
“We’re not gonna beat Donald Trump by nominating a traditional politician,” Avenatti says.
Donald Trump called Stormy Daniels, real name Stephanie Clifford, “horseface” earlier this week on Twitter while bragging about her failed lawsuit against him. Avenatti responded by saying Trump is “an embarrassment to the United States.”
Stormy Daniels released her book, Full Disclosure, this month. It became a New York Times bestseller immediately.
